This is the research I was doing earlier today. The research is different, but applies to what I was searching for, so I give both. You might find some things interesting. These articles and papers range from pay gaps and their reasons, to choices women make for college degrees and choices Millennials are making in the workplace. Then there is a group about (high income) dual-earner family choices.
My interest right now is not fully indicated. I'm thinking about low wage earners and how they are forced to be at least dual-income families, when many would choose otherwise, how the company town is still all around us, with a new face, and how supporting families where one parent can be at home is important, and ultimately more helpful to children, financially, intellectually and psychologically. Some of these families, but not all, are those whose children must eat breakfast at school, for example. The children raised by the State, the corporate machine, their equally immature peers, etc.
I think the POTF is indicative of this concern. It supports varying choices, for a much different group and its needs, but is fully in line with the needs of the powerless, while equally supporting education. I.e. supporting those being denied the ability to scale appropriately, develop familial independence/identity, as well as to provide the safety and high level of adult interaction children need.
Incidentally, women are disproportionally low wage earners (60%) and so tend to be the first to go home. I'm not sure we should be shot down for being practical about current (and past) realities. Many of our leaders lived through the Great Depression. My father was born in 1932 and saw first hand the benefits of the single earner, though poor, family. His mother was first generation born in America, and was determined to raise her child to a still safer educational and socio-economic status. They have seen much, and realities for low-income women have unfortunately changed little over time.
Here are the articles, description first:
A 2012 article with two graphs, about what half (women) the workforce actually does for work. I am struck that women are doing the same jobs they have traditionally done. There are more of those jobs in the changing economy. Other articles below indicate they are often lower paying jobs, and these graphs don’t show STEM, but those are primarily men. Lowwagework.org states women make up 60% of the lower-paying workforce.
Catalyst is a non profit with interest in expanding opportunities for women and business. Gives various 2012-13 statistics re women’s earnings, with citations. Included are race/ethnicity, married/single, and gaps by industry and country. Click on Knowledge Center for other stats.
This Atlantic article is a 2012 interview with Francine Blau, labor economist at Cornell. It indicates the wage gap is multifaceted. She indicates that the gap is closer to 9%, and what type of underestimate that could be.
I note one thing from this article: The most remunerative college majors are overwhelmingly populated by men, while women prevail in the least remunerative. The claim is that in terms of choice, college majors indicate what women and men are interested in doing, and that despite millions spent, women continue not to choose STEM.
An interesting paper, no date, about choices Millennials (their term) are making in the workplace, including their opinions on various gaps (including what is called an ambition gap). Multiple graphs.
This is a 1999 Journal of Marriage and Family article, “Scaling Back: Dual-Earner Couples’ Work-Family Strategies”. It focuses on how couples describe their adaptations at different stages of life. Surely there is more out there on this subject.
Another one (slightly later):
And another, 2014, about deciding on maternity leave:
